Response To The West In The 19th Century

However, opium became such an addictive substance in South China that all the money from South China’s treasury was given to the British East India Company. Because of this, the Qing wanted to prohibit the trading of opium which the British did not like, and caused a three year long war. In result, it turned the Chinese away from wanting to learn the methods of their society because they saw them as the barbarians that released fire power on them and went against their Confucianism way of life. The dynasty of China also failed because there was a lot of internal unrest that was occurring with its people and the Western imperialists. The book states, “In the ensuing Treaty of Tianjin, the Qing agreed to humiliating new concessions: legalization of the opium trade, the opening of additional ports to foreign trade, and cession of the peninsula of Kowloon to the British”(Duiker, 51). In order to try and help with this, the Qing rulers tried to do self-strengthening which was an attempt to adopt the new technologies of the Western world while still trying to keep their Confucian way of life. This reform actually lasted for decades for the Chinese foreign and domestic policy.

Also, citizens became addicted, and the drug eventually killed thousands of people. China’s actions angered Britain politicians even though opium was illegal in Britain as well. But was a result, war started between the two countries. In 1842, the treaty of Nanking ended the war. It was the first unequal treaty with Britain and it said that Chinese had to give up Hong Kong to Britain for ninty-nine years, the British would live in China by extraterritoriality at four ports, distribution of opium would continue and Christain missionaries will be set up throughout China. When China couldn’t meet the ridiculous requirements of the treaty, the second Opium War began in 1956. As a result, Britain won again by the Treaty of Tientsin. The treaty asked to open more ports to outer nations, let foreign leaders into the capital Beijing, and legalized the distribution and use of opium. Their situation was dangerously bad.

China has 5000 years of history which experienced wars, collapses, failures and successes. The Opium War in the year 1839 and 1856 marked the changing point of China’s trade policy with foreigners, especially with British in opium and tea. China changed from getting tributes to being forced to sign the Nanjing Treaty and Tianjing Treaty with British and French. Due to China’s over confidence and unwelcome attitude toward foreigners and opium, it caused the British to declare the Opium War to China which made Chinese suffer for many years, but at the same time it also forced China to open its doors to the foreigners.

When it comes to modernization, the paths taken by Japan and China were strikingly similar. Well, I say paths taken, however I would argue that it was more along the lines of them being forced upon paths out of necessity in order to survive in a world in which the Western powers of Europe and the United States were increasingly encroaching and interfering in East Asia. The paths I will be looking at for these two nations will both begin with the Tokugawa Shogunate in Japan and the Kangxi emperor in China, and several aspects of how these nations and forms of governance operated, as well as large changes in governance. I will look at how these two nations and the West interacted, and how their interactions began to change as time went on. From

In the text, “Letter to Queen Victoria”, written by Lin Zexu in 1839, he implores the Queen of Great Britain, Queen Victoria, to stop her subjects from selling opium to the Chinese public. Zexu does so by exemplifying the past relationship of China and Britain, by moral persuasion, and by warnings and threats. However, Lin Zexu’s assumption of calling British subjects as Barbarian and compliant to Chinese rule ineffectively persuades.

While most of the Western Hemisphere was undergoing drastic advancements, such as former colonies gaining their independence and transforming into more modernized nations, a lot of mishaps were occurring in the Eastern Hemisphere—China, specifically—a nation that was notorious for its isolation from foreign influences. European nations began to greedily eye China’s abundance of desirable resources, such as tea, porcelain, and silk. However, China had very little need or desire for European goods. In an attempt to resolve the trade imbalance Britain began importing opium into China, which would prove to be disastrous for the Chinese population. The dispute over the importation of the drug eventually led to the

As a result of Britain’s presence in India, Britain “introduced Western education. This has brought an ancient and civilized nation in touch with modern thought, modern sciences, and modern life. [Britain] built an administration that is strong and efficient. [Britain] framed wise laws and have established courts of justice.” (Doc 12) Although India experienced many improvements in education and technology, China was left in a poor state. Doc 14 states that “[A chinese woman’s] husband sold everything [they] had.”, and this was the case for many Chinese people. Since many citizens were addicts, they were willing to sell everything they owned for money. As a result of opium, China had a growing poor rural population. There was also inflation and heavy taxes which didn’t help

China and British perspectives on the opium trade were contradistinctive and ultimately became the foundations of the Opium Wars in 1839-42 and 1856-60. The clash of opinions were not based around the narcotic opium itself but stemmed from a misunderstanding of cultures, conflicting economic behaviours and different ethical ideologies.

While The boxer rebellions is still ongoing, the British were selling opium, a poisonous drug made from poppy plants, to the chinese people. The British colonies refused to stop importing opium and continued selling opium to injure the chinese. In document 1 The Opium War, The chinese suffered shameful defeat and were forced to sign the Treaty of Nanjing, which gave Britain the island of Hong Kong and free from the chinese laws at the chinese ports. China’s humiliated lost made them resist against the British rule, eventually leading to the Opium Wars. Although they were manipulated by the British, they still resisted to prove their loyalty and their love for their country. This indicates that the chinese people show Nationalism by portraying the pride they have for their country. The chinese also shows ideology by showing loyalty to their sacredness and ancient culture. In conclusion, imperialism altered China to a country that has nationalism and pride for their

During the 19th century, China transformed from a prosperous economic center to a weakened country in a system controlled by Great Britain, largely due to the opium trade. Prior to Europe’s industrial revolution in 1800, China had little need for products from other countries, and participated sparingly in world trade, while Europe borrowed China’s ideas and inventions to gain a financial foothold. But in the 19th century Britain introduced opium into the Chinese market, setting off a chain of events that lead to the Opium Wars, which along with the opium trade sapped China’s economic strength. Nevertheless, she persisted, and in 1907 China passed a law that blocked the opium trade once and for all and took out Britain’s system of power within

In the early eighteen hundreds, Britain and other European countries demanded more and more Chinese commodities, especially tea and silk. However, only the port in Canton was opened to foreign countries, and Chinese would not take any other form of payments besides silver. The desire to make China into a free market that foreigners have more access to and the increasing, though illegal, European opium import to China eventually created tension between the European countries, especially Britain, and the Chinese government (Allingham Par. 1-2). The two battles fought and won by European powers were known as the Opium Wars. China’s politics, economy, and intellects were both positively and negatively

The rise of nationalism in the late 1700s through the early 1800s was frowned upon by the Chinese. It brought democracy, opium trade which eventually led to the opium wars, and the fight over who territories in Shanghai. The British were looking to trade for silver. They offered China lots of silver, for their tea. Britain had essentially scammed the Chinese and instead of paying them the silver they were promised, they payed them with large quantities of opium from the British-Owned India. China didn’t like this, but many of China’s citizens became addicted to the drug of opium. The Chinese were now furious and filled with hate towards western culture. This led to a rise of nationalism within China for its citizens to rebel against this foreign

If there is any circumstantial evidence that China is looking to recreate the Qing Empire or even has the Qing Empire on its mind, there is a modern avenue where the Chinese have voiced their thoughts. On an online forum, a Chinese poster provided their thoughts as they believe “China today is ‘just like the Qing empire’-full of the promise of a growing cosmopolitanism that will strengthen China and integrate it into a global political system.” Just as much as the author was aware of the strength in the Qing dynasty, the author of the forum post also saw in what he recognized as a similarity between opium addiction and internet addiction. For good or bad, the Qing empire remains in the minds of the Chinese. The idea of the Qing Empire as an imperialist power and the victim of imperialism is not entirely lost on the world.

In the 1700’s, the British Empire conquered a major poppy-growing region of India. They began to smuggle opium from India to China via the East India Company. Great Britain used profits from opium trade to buy and export

Imperial China was one of the greatest civilizations. It was leading in its inventions, trading routes, and craftsmanship. Beginning in 221 BC, it lasted up till the final Qing Dynasty. It’s downfall can be attributed to the introduction of the drug, opium, from the west. It’s introduction inspired two wars, namely The Opium wars of the 19th century. In the 18th century, the country was flourishing, while it had control of international trade. By the 19th century, China had lost control of trade and was struggling with mass amounts of poverty and addiction.